SAN LEANDRO — Three teenagers were arrested and charged with felonies in connection with a series of burglaries and robberies last week, authorities said Thursday.
Shortly before 10 p.m. April 19, officers were working a crime-suppression operation near the Greenhouse Marketplace, 699 Lewelling Blvd., when they noticed the teens in a parked vehicle in the shopping center’s parking lot, police said.
At the same time that a check of the vehicle’s plates found another police department sought it in connection with several auto burglaries earlier that day, officers learned of a 911 call from a woman who told dispatchers her purse had been stolen at the shopping center.
After officers say they watched a teen get out of the vehicle and burglarize a car parked at a nearby FoodMaxx parking lot, several other officers swept in and detained all three teens.
Officers say they found evidence that the teens had committed the purse robbery, and a search of the vehicle yielded not only the purse but several items from victims in nearby cities and towns.
Officers spent several hours afterward working with outside agencies to return those items to victims, San Leandro police Lt. Isaac Benabou said.
“Our officers did an excellent job identifying a crime trend and appropriately executed a plan to catch the suspects,” Benabou said.
“We will not stand idly to these criminals while our citizens are victimized. A well planned, pro-active police operation led to the arrest of these perpetrators.”
The Alameda County juvenile district attorney charged all three teens with felony charges, but their cases were still under investigation, police said.
Anyone with information should call San Leandro police’s criminal investigative division at 510-577-3230, leave anonymous tips at 510-577-3278 or text “TipSLPolice” to 888777.
Contact George Kelly at 408-859-5180.